Austria’s third largest city, Linz is a charming town where river cruisers dock alongside the Danube’s banks within walking distance of the city center. Most tourists head for the Hauptplatz, reputed to be Europe’s largest baroque square, where you can take a seat in a cafe to try the famous “Linzer Torte,” a cake comprised of jam and almonds.

On New Year’s Eve, the city celebrated with an opening ceremony commemorating Linz’s role as European Cultural Capital 2009.

Opening ceremony events included an exhibit, Standard Time, where up to 80 workers changed positions of a wooden exhibit each minute to reflect the current time, and the Rocket Symphony, where more than 400 amateur singers complemented with their voices the fireworks over the Danube River.

The year 2009 will see many other events in Linz, including art, movie and culinary festivals throughout the year.

Also, 120 free internet hotspots were installed in Linz, including the entire main square.

In Austria, by the way, the pig symbolizes good luck for the new year. Tables may be decorated with miniature pigs made from marzipan, maple sugar, fudge, cookie dough or chocolate.

People often exchange miniature marzipan, plastic or ceramic pigs as gifts.

Immortalized by Johann Strauss in Blue Danube Waltz, the Danube winds from Germany’s Black Forest through Austria into the Balkans before dumping into the Black Sea.

The romantic river flows through six countries and meanders for nearly 1,800 miles. Some of Europe’s most-fabled cities — Regensburg, Passau, Linz, Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest — are situated on the banks of the Danube, making the Danube a good choice for first-time river cruisers.

On our eight-day cruise on Uniworld’s River Empress, there were both first-timers and repeaters. Our cruise began in Budapest and ended in Passau, with an overnight on board in each city at the beginning and end of the cruise.

Ashore, Uniworld includes at least one free tour in each destination, so that passengers get an overview and introduction to the places they visit. Following is a brief overview of the destinations we visited along the Danube.

Budapest was once referred to as the “Queen of the Danube,” because of the city’s cultural significance at a time when Hungary was three times the size it is today.

On one side of the Danube, hilly Buda retains much of its Middle Age charm; its cobbled streets and Gothic buildings have been well preserved. On the other side of the river, Pest is the thriving city center.

River Empress was docked on the Buda side. A free ferry shuttled us between Buda and Pest.

Bratislava. Slovakia’s capital city was a “capital in exile” for Hungary’s kings and archbishops during Turkey’s occupation of Hungary and most of the middle Danube basin from 1526 to 1784.

Bratislava is dominated by an enormous castle that stands sentinel over the Danube. Though the castle dates back to the 9th century it was razed in 1811 and rebuilt.

Vienna was the next stop for River Empress. After the included city tour, many passengers visited Schonbrunn Palace, the imperial summer palace of the Habsburgs, one of Europe’s principal sovereign dynasties from the 15th to the 20th centuries.

Vienna is characterized by beautiful parks, legendary Viennese coffee houses and Baroque palaces. One of the city’s most famous landmarks, Stephansdom (St. Stephen’s Cathedral) is also one of Europe’s most impressive Gothic structures.

The musically inclined will appreciate that Mozart, Beethoven and Strauss composed their greatest operas and symphonies in Austria’s capital city. The composer Schubert was born here.

An optional excursion offered by Uniworld features an evening concert, and this one is a “don’t miss” for lovers of music and culture.

River Empress called on Durnstein one morning, and Melk (pictured) that afternoon, with scenic river cruising and an outdoor Bavarian buffet on the upper deck.

Using the bicycles on board, a group of us bicycled through the vineyard-rich Wacchau Valley in Durnstein. Read more about that by clicking on “Pedaling Along The Danube.”

In Melk, the included tour took us to the 900-plus-year-old Melk Abby, situated high atop granite cliffs overlooking the Danube and the village of Melk.

From Linz, on the following day, most passengers opted for the included tour to Salzburg (about two hours each way), birthplace of Mozart and the setting for the acclaimed musical, “The Sound of Music.”

Situated at the confluence of three rivers, Passau marked the end of our cruise. We overnighted on board.

The included tour featured a walking tour and an organ concert, performed on Europe’s largest pipe organ at St. Stephan’s Cathedral.

Disembarking passengers either transferred to Munich’s international airport, 90 minutes drive, or for a post-cruise stay in Prague, about three hours by motorcoach.

My river cruise has turned into a cycling tour. Each day during this journey up the Danube on Uniworld’s River Empress, I have had the opportunity to straddle a saddle and pedal along the river — or out into the picturesque countryside – with the River Empress serving as my comfortable floating hotel.

I can’t say that I expected to be cycling so much on what could be considered a “relaxed” river cruise. In fact, river cruises are often perceived as being “too relaxed”for some, particularly younger people and those who want to be active. But lately river cruise companies have been going to great strides to cater to those who want an active vacation. River Empress, for example, carries six sturdy Dutch bicycles, which are available for guests to use free of charge.

“I knew I would be one of the younger passengers on board,”says 45-year-old Laura, traveling with her mother and a friend from Greensboro, North Carolina. But she adds that she’s been pleasantly surprised by the options to be active ashore. “You may have to look for it,”she says, “but the options are there.”

I didn’t have to look far. In Bratislava, I joined the hotel manager (pictured) and the executive chef for a three-hour ride on flat, paved, dedicated bike trails. One of the great things about cycling in Europe is that traffic and bicycles often use separate roads.

The next day, our ship docked in Vienna. The Danube flows on the outskirts of Austria’s capital city, and it’s a bit ambitious to think of walking “to town.”I’m sure it would have taken an hour to reach the heart of the city on foot. And while Uniworld includes a complimentary city tour in Vienna, I had done the bus tour before, and so I hopped on a bike instead. I’m glad I did. I had an exhilarating ride.

Shortly after pedaling away from the River Empress, I asked a fellow cyclist (a Viennese bike commuter) if he could steer me in the general direction of the city center. “Follow me,”he instructed. And follow I did. We weaved in and out of traffic, hopped sidewalks and dodged pedestrians. “Hope you don’t mind running red lights,”he shouted over his shoulder. I was in no position to argue.

Passing Stadt Park, he pointed to the statue of Johann Strauss (pictured left), which I later came back to see. We continued along Ringstrasse, Vienna’s best-known street, and from it, my escort pointed me to the Sacher Hotel, where we parted ways with a wave. I peeked in the hotel, walked along the pedestrian street, then headed back to the ship — exhilarated and euphoric.

The next morning, shortly after we docked in Durnstein, my stateroom phone rang. “Did I wake you?”the voice on the other end said. “No,”I replied. It was Rudy, the hotel manager who I had cycled with two days before. “Five of us are cycling through the Wachau Valley,”he said, “and we have one more bike available. Want to join?”Of course I did. “We’re leaving in five minutes,”he added. I hustled to gather my things and headed out to join the others.

It was, suffice to say, one of those mornings when everything seemed right with the world. The sunlight was so golden that it appeared to have texture, like a golden cheese. I could have cut a slice and put it in my pocket. The six of us cycled past vineyards where workers waved to us. We pedaled through small villages, where the locals greeted us with a pleasant, “Morgen.”The world was a happy place, especially from the seat of a bike.

We pedaled for nearly two hours, returning to the fairy-tale-like Durnstein, where we had a glass of wine — a perfect ending to pedaling through Austria’s wine country. Who would have imagined that we were on a cruise?